“It is the simple truth that mortal man cannot understand why the gods shape events as they do. Why some men and women are cut off in fullest flower while others live to dwindle into shadows of themselves. Why virtue must sometimes be trampled and evil flourish amid the beauty of a country garden. Why chance, sheer random chance, plays such an overwhelming role in the running of the life lines and the fate lines of men.”

I’m delighted to present our signed, limited edition of Guy Gavriel Kay’s acclaimed Tigana. Inspired by the spirit of Renaissance Italy, this edition draws on Italian typography, materials, and craftsmanship to honour the novel’s richly Italianate world. 

A powerful exploration of defiance against tyranny, the preservation of history, and the fight to reclaim lost identity, Tigana is a masterpiece by one of Canada’s most distinguished authors.

Set in the Peninsula of the Palm, a region that closely resembles Renaissance Italy, Tigana tells the story of a people whose homeland has been obliterated—not just physically, but from the very memories of everyone except those who once called it home. It follows a brave group of men and women as they embark on a perilous crusade to overthrow their conquerors and restore to their world the brilliance of a long-lost name: Tigana.

Kay’s narrative blends the richness of epic fantasy with the intimacy of human emotion, creating a poignant and powerful story with intricate world-building, nuanced characters, and profound themes.

Celebrating its 35th anniversary this year, Publishers Weekly described it as a “brilliant and complex portrayal of good and evil” and USA Today praised it as a “boldly complex, intelligently articulated romance.”

Edition Information

Tigana is available in three states: the Collector’s Edition of up to 600 copies; the Deluxe Edition of 250 copies; and the Lettered Edition of 26 copies.

Acclaimed artist Julien Delval has provided the artwork for the edition—17 full-colour paintings and 9 pen-and-ink illustrations—with all the artwork included in all three states.

Tigana is printed by offset lithography at Gomer Press in Wales.

All three states are presented in two volumes. The first volume contains Parts One to Three and spans approximately 450 pages, while the second volume includes Parts Four and Five with around 350 pages.

Each book measures 170 × 240 mm (6.7 × 9.5 in), with sewn signatures and rounded backs. Ribbon markers and head and tail bands are also included.

All copies are signed by Guy Gavriel Kay and Julien Delval on a letterpress-printed sheet tipped into the end of the second volume.

Pre-orders destined for Europe will be fulfilled by Ludlow Bookbinders in the United Kingdom and copies for the rest of the world will be fulfilled by us here in Canada. At this time, there are no duties on books shipped from Canada to the United States. Should that change, we will make arrangements to have the books sent to a distributor in the US, and from there, mailed out to US collectors. 

As with every Conversation Tree Press book, you can expect:
- A newly typeset book, thoughtfully designed in harmony with the binding, artwork, and subject matter. 
- All colour artwork reproduced in full colour across all three editions. 
- All artwork included in every state. 
- A limited edition that will never be reprinted.
- A custom, handmade slipcase or other enclosure made of thick, sturdy boards for maximum protection, at no additional cost.

Collector’s Edition

Availability:
1. Wednesday, July 30th at 10am ET: Collectors who have Deluxe/Lettered rights from their Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas pre-order will be able to pre-order a Collector’s Edition along with their matching Deluxe/Lettered copy at this time if they wish. A link will be sent via email.
2. Friday August 1st at 12pm ET: All remaining copies of the Collector’s Edition become available to the public on the Store page.

The Collector’s Edition of Tigana is limited to up to 600 two-volume, unnumbered sets, with the final limitation set some time after pre-orders commence.  

Both volumes are bound in full cloth by Gomer Press printed with wraparound artwork from Julien Delval, with the title, author and artist foil-stamped in gold on the spines. The endpapers are GF Smith Colorplan.

The text and pen and ink artwork is printed on Fedrigoni Arena Rough Natural White 120gsm (80lb) paper, and the full colour paintings are printed on 135gsm coated paper and tipped into the books.

Both books are housed in a handmade slipcase crafted by Ludlow Bookbinders in England. The slipcase is covered in premium cloth and lined on the inside with soft Suedel material.

All copies are signed by Guy Gavriel Kay and Julien Delval on a letterpress printed page at the end of the second volume.

US$325 for the two-volume set including slipcase. Shipping is expected in Q1 2026.

Deluxe Edition

Availability:
1. Wednesday, July 30th at 10am ET: Email sent to collectors who have Deluxe rights from #1-150 of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas with a private link to pre-order a matching copy of Tigana.
2. Friday August 1st at 12pm ET: Unclaimed copies between #1-150, and copies #151-250 available to the public on the Store page. Copies from #1-200 will include rights to Emily St. John Mandel’s Sea of Tranquility.

The Deluxe Edition of Tigana is limited to 250 hand-numbered, two-volume sets, bound by Ludlow Bookbinders in beautiful handmade materials and decorative papers that evoke the spirit of Renaissance Italy.

Handmade Cave Paper

Each volume is quarter-bound in handmade Cave Paper by Zoë Goehring. The first volume features a custom-commissioned terracotta shade, while the second uses Monsoon, a blue-green paper from Cave’s standard line—both chosen to reflect the respective colour schemes of the wraparound artwork on the Collector’s Edition.

Cave Paper is an exceptionally tough and durable handmade paper, valued by bookbinders and artists for more than twenty‑five years. Made from a blend of 100% Belgian flax and cotton rag, its dense fibres produce a hard, resilient sheet that withstands handling, adhesives, and wear over time.

Hand-Marbled Paper from Italy

The boards are covered in hand-marbled paper by Maria Giannini, a sixth-generation artisan at Giulio Giannini e Figlio—an Italian workshop founded in 1856. Known internationally for its fine bookbinding and decorated papers, the Giannini family has carried on the marbling tradition for over 160 years.

The text and pen and ink artwork is printed on Fedrigoni Acquerello 120gsm (80lb) paper, and the full colour paintings are printed on 135gsm coated paper and tipped into the books. The cover artwork for the Collector’s Editions will be tipped into the respective volumes of the Deluxe Edition.

The top edge of each volume is gilt and the title, author and artist names are foil stamped in gold on the spine. The endpapers are Hahnemühle Bugra.

The books are housed in a handmade slipcase wrapped in Rossi 1931 decorative paper with gold highlights and capped in cloth. The inside is lined in soft Suedel material.

All copies are signed by Guy Gavriel Kay and Julien Delval on a letterpress printed page at the end of the second volume.

US$775 for the two-volume set including slipcase. Shipping is expected in Q2 2026.

Lettered Edition

Availability:
1. Wednesday, July 30th at 10am ET: Email sent to collectors who have Lettered rights from Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas with a private link to pre-order a matching copy of Tigana.
2. Friday August 1st at 12pm ET: Any unclaimed Lettered books will be made available to the public on the Store page.

The Lettered Edition of Tigana is limited to 26 two-volume sets, inscribed A-Z. They are bound by Ludlow Bookbinders in half Bradel bindings using the finest materials.

Calf-Skin Vellum Boards

The front board of each volume is covered in calfskin vellum procured from William Cowley in the UK, a storied fourth-generation family enterprise established in 1870, renowned for crafting vellum by hand using age-old expertise and methods. Each sheet is painstakingly prepared through a labour‑intensive process (see video) that has changed little in centuries, resulting in a material whose durability and beauty have made it a mainstay of fine bookmaking for hundreds of years.

The title TIGANA is blind-stamped on the front board, intentionally subtle and difficult to see. This quiet presence reflects one of the novel’s central themes—the erasure of Tigana’s very name and history from memory.

The boards are made especially thick, as required by the strength of vellum, and bevelled along the edges for a more refined finish.

Handmade Cave Paper

The spines and back boards are covered in handmade Cave Paper by Zoë Goehring. The first volume features a custom-commissioned terracotta shade, while the second uses Monsoon, a blue-green paper from Cave’s standard line—both chosen to reflect the respective colour schemes of the wraparound artwork on the Collector’s Edition.

Cave Paper is an exceptionally tough and durable handmade paper, valued by bookbinders and artists for more than twenty‑five years. Made from a blend of 100% Belgian flax and cotton rag, its dense fibres produce a hard, resilient sheet that withstands handling, adhesives, and wear over time.

Please note: We ran out of the custom terracotta Cave Paper before producing the Lettered prototypes. As the paper is custom-made and Zoe’s schedule didn’t allow for another batch in time, we used an alternative material in the same colour for the first volume’s prototype.

Hand-Marbled Endpapers from Italy

The endpapers are hand-marbled by Maria Giannini, a sixth-generation artisan at Giulio Giannini e Figlio—an Italian workshop founded in 1856. Known internationally for its fine bookbinding and decorated papers, the Giannini family has carried on the marbling tradition for over 160 years.

Letterpress-printed title page on handmade paper

The title page for each volume of the Lettered Edition is letterpress‑printed on Roma, a handmade 100% cotton paper from Fabriano, which has been producing papers in Italy since 1294. The line artwork and text are printed in black and the title is blind stamped, another reference to the novel’s theme of memory and loss.

The text and pen and ink artwork is printed on Fedrigoni Acquerello 120gsm (80lb) paper, and the full colour paintings are printed on 135gsm coated paper and tipped into the books. The cover artwork for the Collector’s Editions will be tipped into the respective volumes of the Lettered Edition.

The top edge of each volume is gilt and the title, author and artist names are foil stamped in gold on the spine.

The books are housed in a fold-out solander box with a foil stamped label on Cave Paper, and the interior is lined in Rossi 1931 decorative paper. 

All copies are signed by Guy Gavriel Kay and Julien Delval on a letterpress printed page at the end of the second volume.

US$2,695 for the two-volume set including solander box. Shipping is expected in Q2 2026.

Artwork by Julien Delval

Acclaimed artist Julien Delval has provided the artwork for the edition. While Julien is already an established interpreter of Guy’s unforgettable worlds, this project marks his most expansive visual realisation to date. Our edition features 17 full-colour paintings and 9 pen-and-ink illustrations—a body of work that reflects not only the grandeur of the story but the depth of Julien’s talent.

Eleven of the interior paintings and four of the pen-and-inks are shown in the above slideshow.

All of the artwork will be included in each of the three editions, with all colour illustrations reproduced in full colour throughout. 

Interior Design & Typography

All of the text for Tigana is set in Requiem, an old-style serif typeface designed by Jonathan Hoefler. Requiem draws inspiration from inscriptional capitals found in Il Modo de Temperare le Penne (1523), a writing manual by Ludovico Vicentino degli Arrighi, one of the foremost calligraphers and type designers of Renaissance Italy. Its design celebrates the classical proportions and refined elegance of the Renaissance—a period whose aesthetics closely mirror the world evoked in The Peninsula of the Palm.

The edition makes use of Requiem’s three optical sizes, allowing for harmonious typography across titles, headings and body text.

A set of ornamental “cartouches” are also used for various headings.

As with many of our books, I started constructing the page layout using the Van de Graaf canon, popularized by Jan Tschhold’s The Form of the Page.

Derived from observations of the design of medieval manuscripts, it is a system based on geometric proportions that helps determine the optimal size of the text area and margins on a page, ensuring the content is well-balanced and harmonious.

The generous margins provided by the canon is one of the reasons it works well—providing ample space to hold the book comfortably without covering the text while creating an inviting reading experience.

Revised Maps

The six maps in Tigana have been thoughtfully revised, with updated typography and clearer detailing to improve legibility and help readers more easily navigate and understand the geography of the story.

Printing at Gomer Press

Gomer Press, a fourth-generation family-owned business, will print Tigana using offset lithography. Based in the beautiful town of Llandysul, Wales, they have produced work for clients such as the Royal Collection, the Royal Academy of Arts, and the Folio Society.

I had the pleasure of visiting their facilities earlier this summer, meeting the people I’d been corresponding with over the past two years as we planned Tigana and seeing their state-of-the-art equipment in person.

Gomer Press will also be binding the Collector’s Edition of Tigana while Ludlow Bookbinders will be making the slipcases.

Hand binding at Ludlow Bookbinders

Ludlow Bookbinders, located in Shropshire, England, have been keeping the craft of English bookbinding alive for generations. They’ve hand bound a number of Conversation Tree Press editions, and we’re looking forward to collaborating with them on the Deluxe and Lettered Editions of Tigana.

About Guy Gavriel Kay

Guy Gavriel Kay is the international bestselling Canadian author of fourteen novels, including the Fionavar Tapestry series, The Last Light of the Sun, Under Heaven, River of Stars, Children of Earth and Sky, and A Brightness Long Ago. He has been awarded the International Goliardos Prize for his work in the literature of the fantastic and won the World Fantasy Award for Ysabel in 2008. In 2014 he was named to the Order of Canada, the country’s highest civilian honour. His works have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Upcoming Books

We have a number of books in the works, including Emily St. John Mandel’s Sea of Tranquility, China Mieville’s Perdido Street Station, Michael Moorcock’s The Chronicles of Elric series, and Neal Stephenson’s Snow Crash, among others. See our Schedule page for more information and sign up below to the newsletter to keep updated.